Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.9.19

Anantarām Śāstrījī: [chants verse; Prabhupāda and devotees chant responsively]

bālasya neha śaraṅaṁ pitarau nṛsiṁha nārtasya cāgadam udanvati majjato nauḥ taptasya tat-pratividhir ya ihāñjaseṣṭas tāvad vibho tanu-bhṛtāṁ tvad-upekṣitānām [SB 7.9.19]

[break] [00:56]

Dayānanda: Translation: "My Lord Nṛsiṁha, the Supreme, persons who are neglected by You and not taken care of by You, such embodied souls cannot do anything better on account of bodily conception of life. And whatever remedial measures they take, they are certainly not permanent, although they may be beneficial temporarily. In this concern, there is the example of the father and mother who cannot give any protection to their children. The physician and medicine..."

Prabhupāda: "Cannot give any relief."

Dayānanda: "...which cannot give relief to the suffering patient, and the boat on the ocean which cannot give protection to the drowning man."

Prabhupāda: This is very instructive verse. The whole world is planning to give relief to the suffering humanity, but the foolish people, they do not know that you may do your best, but if it is not sanctioned by the Supreme Lord, all these measures will not be of any use. "Why? We have got science, medicine, and relief arrangement. They are all useless?" Yes. They are useful so long, as long as Kṛṣṅa says "Yes." If Kṛṣṅa says "No," then in spite of all this relief, nothing will be done. This is the answer. You can open many hospitals, but if Kṛṣṅa says that "This patient must die," you cannot give any protection. That is not possible. In spite of your hospital, good medicine, good physician, the patient must die.

So they do not see to this, that in spite of our so much advancement of civilization, hospitals and other relief measures, why still people are suffering? You are increasing hospital or beds of hospital. You are very much proud that "We have opened hospitals." That... What does it mean? That means people have become diseased. You have opened hospitals, you are very much proud, but what is the other side? Other side: that people have increased their diseased condition. That they do not see. They are simply proud of increasing hospital. Why there should be hospital? Why not stop disease? That is scientific advancement. Stop disease, and there will be no need of opening hospital. Kṛṣṅa therefore presents in the Bhagavad-gītā that "You rascal, you see. Real problem is janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi [Bg 13.9]."

[Humility, pridelessness, nonviolence, tolerance, simplicity, approaching a bona fide spiritual master, cleanliness, steadiness and self-control; renunciation of the objects of sense gratification, absence of false ego, the perception of the evil of birth, death, old age and disease; nonattachment to children, wife, home and the rest, and evenmindedness amid pleasant and unpleasant events; constant and unalloyed devotion to Me, resorting to solitary places, detachment from the general mass of people; accepting the importance of self-realization, and philosophical search for the Absolute Truth—all these I thus declare to be knowledge, and what is contrary to these is ignorance.]

You can invent very nice, up-to-date, modernized medicine, but why don't you stop disease? That you cannot do. That is not possible. Janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi. You are taking so many measures to stop untimely death. Just like in your country there are beaches and so many warning, "Don't come here." And there is guard seeing if anyone is dying. So... But you cannot stop death. That is not possible. You may take measure, so many—you cannot stop death. Children, somebody says, the parents do not take care, but even the parents take care, is it guaranteed that the children will not die? There are many rich men, they are taking care of their children. Rich men, they are taking care of the diseased person: good physician, good medicine. Why the diseased person is dying? Why the children suffering?

So these are to be observed. Why these things happen? That means the ultimate control is in the hand of Kṛṣṅa. If Kṛṣṅa sanctions, then everything will be possible. So why not take shelter of Kṛṣṅa? This is the idea. You take shelter of Kṛṣṅa, and if Kṛṣṅa likes, He will give you all protection. And He promises that "I'll give protection."

sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṅaṁ vraja ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi... [Bg 18.66]

Because we become diseased, we become subject to birth and death, we... This is all due to our sinful activities. Why you are repeatedly...? We are eternal. Na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre [Bg 2.20]. This is our position, that we do not die even after the body's destruction. Then why should I be in this position, that repeatedly I have to die, I have to give up this body, again accept another body, again suffer? This is the problem. But mūḍhā, duṣkṛtina, they do not see to the real problem. That is their fault. Neither they have knowledge to see the real problem. Therefore they are mūḍhā. Is it not? He's understood that na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre [Bg 2.20]. So this question does not come, that "I am eternal. I do not die after the annihilation of the body. Why I am subjected to this tribulation?" Nobody thinks; therefore mūḍhā. Just like animal. Animal, in the slaughterhouse, one animal is being killed, and the other animal is eating grass. He's thinking that "I am safe." He does not know that "Next moment I'll be killed." This is animal life. The human life means if somebody is being killed, so he should be immediately warned, taking warning, "Oh, my turn is coming. Let me go away."

There is one story in this connection. Not story; these are facts. A hunter spread his net. So some little birds, they fell down in the net and they are crying. They are crying. So the father, mother, when they came, they saw that their children are in danger: "It is caught by the net of the hunter." So mother immediately jumped over it to save the children, and she was also captured. Then the father saw, "Now if I go to save them, I'll be captured. Let me go away. Let me take sannyāsa. That's all." [laughter] That is intelligence. You cannot give protection to your family, to your society, to your... No, you cannot give. That is not possible. They must die. They must be captured by the network of māyā. You cannot save them. If you want to save them, then make them Kṛṣṅa conscious. That is the only remedy. Unless you are expert in saving your children by giving them Kṛṣṅa consciousness, then you are not..., you should not become father and mother. That is real contraceptive method, that "I shall... We are married, undoubtedly, husband and wife, but unless we are competent to give protection to my children—no more death—we should not beget children." This is real contraceptive.

That is the instruction in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam: pitā na sa syāj jananī na sā syāt 'na mocayed yaḥ samupeta-mṛtyum [SB 5.5.18].

[One who cannot deliver his dependents from the path of repeated birth and death should never become a spiritual master, a relative, a father, a husband, a mother or a worshipable demigod.]

Your duty is to give protection to children, father, mother. That's very good. But real protection is that "My children, this boy, this girl, has come in my belly. Now this is the last. I shall train them in such a way that next birth, he'll not have a material body." How it is? Yes, it is possible. How? Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya [Bg 4.9].

[One who knows the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities does not, upon leaving the body, take his birth again in this material world, but attains My eternal abode, O Arjuna.]

One can give up this material body... Everyone has to give it up. There is no doubt. But one is giving up this body and accepting another body, tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ [Bg 2.13].

[As the embodied soul continually passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into another body at death. The self-realized soul is not bewildered by such a change.]

But there is another method, that he's not going to accept any more material body. That is said in the Bhagavad-gītā, tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti [Bg 4.9]: "After giving up this body, he's not going to accept another material body." Who? Janma karma ca divyaṁ ye jānāti tattvataḥ: "Anyone who has understood Kṛṣṅa as He is." This is the secret, to teach your children like that, that what is Kṛṣṅa. From the beginning you can do that. The children are under your control. Just like we are teaching these boys. They are simply chanting, dancing. That is Kṛṣṅa consciousness. They are advancing in Kṛṣṅa consciousness. It is not that useless education—after some years they will learn how to smoke biḍi. It is not like that. They'll never touch biḍi. This is education. Tan manye adhītam uttamam. Even they are not literary person, they will have character and they'll become Kṛṣṅa devotee. That is real education. Don't think that "These boys are brought here. They're not giving any education, academic. They do not know what is history, what is geography." They know little, little; not very much. We don't require to know very much, neither we are very much concerned, learning A-B-C-D. Even without A-B-C-D they will be advanced in education. This is Prahlāda Mahārāja's instruction. Tan manye adhītam uttamam. One who has taken to Kṛṣṅa consciousness directly, he is actually advanced in education.

What is this education? This education has no value. Even from mundane point of view, Cāṅakya Paṅḍita... I have several..., recited this verse,

mātṛvat para-dāreṣu para-dravyeṣu loṣṭravat ātmavat sarva-bhūteṣu yaḥ paśyati sa paṅḍitaḥ [Nīti Śāstra]

Who is a paṅḍita? Paṅḍita means one who has learned how to see other women, means except one's wife, anyone, any woman—mother. He's paṅḍita. Where is that education? Where is that education? No. But these children will be educated in that way, to see all woman as mother. Mātṛvat para-dāreṣu para-dravyeṣu loṣṭravat. Para-dravyeṣu: others' property as garbage in the street. Nobody touches. That is paṅḍita. He'll not touch even anything. Even valuable jewel is lying on the street, a paṅḍita will say, "I shall not touch it." This is a moral education. And ātmavat sarva-bhūteṣu. Ātmavat. If you feel some pain by pinching, why should you pinch others? And that is paṅḍita. If you cry when your throat is cut with a knife, why you should slaughter other animals? Therefore Lord Christ says, "Thou shall not kill." But these people are so uneducated. In spite of their Ph.D.'s, they have no this simple education, that "I suffer when I am killed. Why shall I kill others?" This is the modern education, all nonsense rascals' education. This is not education.

So if we have to become father and mother, we shall have to teach our children in such a way that next life, no more material life. He goes back to home, back to Godhead. That is real father and mother. Therefore it is said, balasya neha śaraṅaṁ nṛsiṁha pitarau. If the father, mother do not know how to give protection to the children, then what is the use of taking shelter? Huh? In Prema-vivarta it is said, janame janame sabe pitā mātā pāya, kṛṣṅa guru nahe mile bhaja hari ei. Every... Cats and dogs, they also get father and mother. Without father, mother, who can take birth? So to become the father, mother, like cats and dogs, that is not human civilization. The father, mother's duty is to train the children in such a way that they will be interested in Kṛṣṅa and guru. That is father, mother. Because, Caitanya Mahāprabhu says,

ei rūpe brahmāṅḍa bhramite kona bhāgyavān jīva guru-kṛṣṅa-kṛpayā pāya bhakti-lātā-bīja [Cc Madhya 19.151]

[According to their karma, all living entities are wandering throughout the entire universe. Some of them are being elevated to the upper planetary systems, and some are going down into the lower planetary systems. Out of many millions of wandering living entities, one who is very fortunate gets an opportunity to associate with a bona fide spiritual master by the grace of Kṛṣṅa. By the mercy of both Kṛṣṅa and the spiritual master, such a person receives the seed of the creeper of devotional service.]

So it is the duty of the father and mother to train children in such a way that they will be interested in guru and Kṛṣṅa. Why? By the mercy of guru and Kṛṣṅa, he'll get bhakti-lātā-bīja. And that is real life. Sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmo yato bhaktir adhokṣaje [SB 1.2.6].

[The supreme occupation [dharma] for all humanity is that by which men can attain to loving devotional service unto the transcendent Lord. Such devotional service must be unmotivated and uninterrupted to completely satisfy the self.]

That is real religious system, which teaches the follower how to become a devotee. Yato bhaktir adhokṣaje. Ahaituky apratihatā yenātmā suprasīdati. If you want to make him happy, then you must teach in such a way that he becomes a devotee of the Lord. Then, throughout the whole life, he'll be peaceful and happy. This is required.

Therefore the ordinary father and mother, like cats and dogs, they are not real shelter of the children. That is... Prahlāda Mahārāja said, bālasya neha śaraṅaṁ pitarau nṛsiṁha. Bālasya neha śaraṅaṁ pitarau nṛsiṁha na ārtasya. Ārtasya means diseased, suffering from some disease. Now, just like we have already explained, we are opening hopitals and bed... That is not. You can do it, but at the same time he must be Kṛṣṅa conscious. We have got practical examples. Some of our devotees, they go to the hospital, and they purchase our books and they become a devotee. Even in hospital bed they're reading Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Bhagavad-gītā and taking benefit. That is real remedy. So after being cured, he'll become a devotee. So this medicine is not cure. This literature is cure—Kṛṣṅa consciousness. That is real cure. Nārtasya cāgadam. And udanvati majjato nauḥ. Everyone is drowned, either you take figuratively or really. In the samudra, in the sea, ocean, there are always ojhs, [?] waves. So your tiny boat or big ship, that is not safe side. We have got experience. When I was going to New York on ship—I had no money to go by plane—so in the deep sea ocean, especially in the Atlantic Ocean, it was nothing, like a small ball, tottering like this. At any moment can be capsized. Although very big ship with very big load, but it is nothing in the sea. So that is not sure. There is no surety that because you are in a big ship you'll be saved. No. In your country it happened, say, fifty, sixty years, the Titanic, or what is that? In the first voyage everything was drowned, all big, big men. So nature's freak is so strong that you cannot say that "Because I have got a nice ship, I'll be saved." No, that is not possible. Without Kṛṣṅa's protection, this, all these counteracting measures, will be all useless. Therefore teach people how to take shelter of Kṛṣṅa. Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṅaṁ vraja [Bg 18.66].

So you can say that "Does it mean that God is partial? He take only care of the devotees and not others?" He takes care of everyone, but everyone is not fortunate to take shelter of Kṛṣṅa. When He says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekam, He does not say to His devotees only. He says to everyone. But everyone is not fortunate to take shelter of Kṛṣṅa. Unfortunate. Samo 'haṁ sarva-bhūteṣu. He's not partial. Samo 'haṁ sarva-bhūteṣu ne me dveṣyo 'sti na priyaḥ [Bg 9.29].

[I envy no one, nor am I partial to anyone. I am equal to all. But whoever renders service unto Me in devotion is a friend, is in Me, and I am also a friend to him.]

Nobody is enemy or friend of Kṛṣṅa. Everyone is His son. Ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitā [Bg 14.4].

[It should be understood that all species of life, O son of Kuntī, are made possible by birth in this material nature, and that I am the seed-giving father.]

Just like the father teaches every son to become good, but there are unfortunate sons who do not take care of the father and remains to be unfortunate. So it is not Kṛṣṅa's partiality; it is our misfortune that we do not take care of the instruction of Kṛṣṅa and suffer in this material world. This is the position. These rascals, they inquire, "Why, if Kṛṣṅa is so good, why He has put me into this position?" The rascal does not know that Kṛṣṅa wants you all to be happy, and He has given the instruction how to become happy. But we are unfortunate. We do not take Kṛṣṅa's instruction, and suffer. This knowledge is not there. Māyāyapahṛta-jñānā. He's suffering for his own fault, and he's accusing God that "He has put me into this position." No. Therefore those who are devotees, they do not become so foolish. When they are suffering, they do not accuse Kṛṣṅa. They say, "My Lord, it is Your mercy that I am suffering." Just the opposite. Tat te 'nukampāṁ susamīkṣamāṅaḥ [SB 10.14.8]. Because he knows that "I am suffering on account of my own fault. So better Kṛṣṅa is adjusting the thing, giving me little trouble, that's all." That is the position. Karmāṅi nirdahati kintu ca bhakti-bhājām [Bs 5.54].

[I adore the primeval Lord Govinda, who burns up to their roots all fruitive activities of those who are imbued with devotion and impartially ordains for each the due enjoyment of the fruits of one's activities, of all those who walk in the path of work, in accordance with the chain of their previously performed works, no less in the case of the tiny insect that bears the name of indragopa than in that of Indra, king of the devas.]

So we have to learn all these things.

Then, taptasya tat-pratividhiḥ. I think in some reading there is yat-pratividhiḥ. Eh? But here it is tat-pratividhiḥ. All right; what it is. So they..., we have so many countermeasures for..., because this whole world, this material world, means duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam [Bg 8.15].

[After attaining Me, the great souls, who are yogīs in devotion, never return to this temporary world, which is full of miseries, because they have attained the highest perfection.]

It is a place for suffering. And that also not permanent place. But our struggle is that "We may not suffer, and we may remain here permanently." That is foolishness. This place is meant for suffering, and you cannot stay here for permanently. This is the constitution of this place. And the whole world, this foolish world, they are struggling to stop suffering and to remain here, permanent. Just see their foolishness. Everyone is trying to remain permanently. Just like we are constructing temples very sound, very strong, but they are constructing skyscraper building strong, permanent. But he does not know, "Whether I shall be able to live here permanently?" So they can put the argument to us also, that "This is the case with you also." But our case is different. We are constructing this temple not for our living but for Kṛṣṅa's. That is the difference. That is the difference. We do not make any temple or house for ourself. We try to give chance to the devotees, and Kṛṣṅa shall live here; Kṛṣṅa's devotees will learn how to worship Him. That is our purpose. Here it is not a free hotel for learning how to gratify senses. No. This is not our aim and object. That is the difference. Therefore nirbandhe kṛṣṅa-sambandhe yukta-vairāgyam ucyate. The same energy is being enacted here for constructing big house, but it is nirbandhe kṛṣṅa-sambandha.

anāsaktasya viṣayān yathārham upayuñjataḥ nirbandhe kṛṣṅa-sambandhe yukta-vairāgyam ucyate [Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 1.2.255]

So taptasya tat-pratividhir ya iha añjasā iṣṭas tāvat. The example is given already, that unless there is sanction by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, you cannot get any benefit with all the machines and all the instrument and all the measures that you have invented to counteract your struggle for existence. The struggle for existence will not be stopped.

Thank you very much.

Devotees: Jaya Prabhupāda. [end]